Byen som skærm

Festival • Urban planning • Roskilde, Denmark • 20th-31st of aug. 2008

Musicon is the name of a new cultural quarter in the city of Roskilde, Denmark. It is situated within the frame of a former industrial site which all together covers 250.000 m2. Having been closed off to the public for several years the cultural department within the municipality of Roskilde, in collaboration with the newly established Musicon office, developed a series of strategies to re-introduce the site into the awareness of local cultural forces as well as to the city's inhabitants. With the help of urban planners, architects, cultural workers, artists and creative consultants a 20 year development plan was formulated. The plan differs from other urban development strategies in the sense that it focused on the commitment and engagement from local forces first, only to add a fitting architecture to support this engagement later in the process. 'First life - then bricks' was the motto under which Musicon was inititated.

'Byen som skærm' was one of the first bigger events taking place on Musicon. It was a frame in which we presented a series of art works documenting, abstracting, contemplating various types of city life. The idea was to invite an imaginative and open reflection in our audiences on what kind of city quarter Musicon could become over the course of the next 20 years. 'Byen som skærm' was developed in collaboration with several local organisations, who each contributed to the event in their own way.